"You're damn right, I know where I am! I'm in Madison Square Garden getting the s*** kicked out of me!" As he faced a concussion test after being struck second ball by Jofra Archer at Lord's, Marnus Labuschagne came close to echoing the words of the former light heavyweight boxing champion Willie Pastrano when a doctor asked him if he knew where he was in the middle of a fight.
The way Labuschagne bounced immediately back up from the blow, punching his gloves together as Archer checked on him, was an unwitting prelude to the main act: a highly organised, brave, and alert 59 that ensured Australia's safety from defeat. But facing the same process that had ended in ruling Steven Smith out of the Test - meaning Labuschagne became the first concussion substitute in Test cricket - he was just hoping to get on with things.
The way Labuschagne bounced immediately back up from the blow, punching his gloves together as Archer checked on him, was an unwitting prelude to the main act: a highly organised, brave, and alert 59 that ensured Australia's safety from defeat. But facing the same process that had ended in ruling Steven Smith out of the Test - meaning Labuschagne became the first concussion substitute in Test cricket - he was just hoping to get on with things.